> Can anyone explain to me why the US leftoids are so afraid of urban
> development? Do these guys really think that the US cities are in such
> a great shape that they do not need any improvements? Or do they think
> that suburban life style is the best thing since toilet paper (along the
> lines "small is beautiful" and kindred variety of BS)? Or are they
> simply pulling a Nader along the lines "to spite my allies I will help a
> crypto-Nazi foe getting elected?"
I don't think that leftoids and activists are afraid of urban development, it's just that we oppose most of it because it is planned by those people with power and money. Urban development and redevelopment are tools of the rich and powerful to arrange cities in a manner that is profitable to their interests. Ordinary citizens have little input into the process and their noninvolvement is encouraged by how local government is set up to fast track development.
In Washington, DC, the interests of the developers is spearheaded by a semi-secret group called the Federal City Council. This group has been remaking Washington, DC from its plans for over 30 years. The FCC has members from the city's ruling class. The late Washington Post owner Katherine Graham was a prominent FCC member. The FCC works closely with local government--many of the redevelopment plans that Mayor Tony Williams is pushing are straight out of the FCC master plan for the city. The use of Hope VI funds in Southeast to relocate poor African-Americans is not about affordable housing, it's about remaking the Anacostia waterfront to create a gentrified zone favorable to Yuppie singles who can pay high taxes to the city, as well as commercial interests. The FCC is responsible for the downtown business improvement districts, the MCI arena, and plans to build a baseball stadium downtown.
Out here in suburban Kansas City, the dynamic is the same, although the developers are less organized. My father, who is a former city planner in Kansas City, is on the planning commission here. He grew up in a small town and shares some of my anti-corporate atttitudes, so he makes the developers jump through hoops to get stuff built. My father's efforts can be noticed if you cross the city line into Overland Park, where they let the builders build just about anything. The funny thing is that one of the biggest developers in the neighborhood is a rather gigantic Methodist church, which is working on a project my father calls "Six Flags Over Jesus."
It's not about being resisting change, but about not having input into that change.
Chuck0